Journey of Healing and New Beginnings

"Cry your heart out, my Duho. I have forgiven you. I am not angry," I said, touching his head.

After a while, he stopped crying and started laughing.

"Come on, let's go." He held my hand and started running in the snow. When they got up and ran, they fell on the ground in a pile of snow.. both of them couldn't stop laughing. Both of them played in the snow as if they were two little ones.

We stayed at the Mountain Hotel in the evening..tomorrow will have another trip. I warmed up by the bonfire.

"Ayoung"

"say Duho"

"It doesn't matter if I don't get you. I will always be like a friend. But I will also bring you your love."

I didn't think he would say those words. Feeling sad, I said to him:

"He can't come to me. We have a lot of fence bricks with us."

"I will bring him to you no matter what the obstacles are. I will talk to him when he comes from the military."

"I miss minsu" I whimpered softly.

"Now go to sleep. Let's talk tomorrow."

"Okay, Duho. I'll go. Aren't you going to sleep?"

"I will sleep in a little while, you go first,"

I said goodbye to him and came to the room. I came and checked the phone. My sadness was forgotten because Minsu's smile was on the wallpaper.

Pictures of playing in the snow I looked at the pictures we took while climbing the mountains and posted one of the best ones on Instagram. This was the first time I put one on mine. The reason I posted this was that I had an idea to share with people. Because I want to show that even if he pulls me down, I will get up.

Some people will scold me and say that I am good now. I thought that people change quickly. I felt a cruel happiness in my heart. I thought that someday I would go to a better place and show them who I am. Looking at the fire that warms the cold, I decided to make a new start.

In the morning, I went to Camellia Hill to see the winter flowers. When I walk alone, new thoughts come to my mind. Du Ho and I walked slowly among these flowers to relieve our pains.

It's been six months since I left Seoul and came to Jeju. I'm still looking for Minsu in my dreams. I was waiting for him to finish his military service. Keeping a maple leaf on a page, I wrote on one page of my diary and closed the book by writing, "Hug to be crazy for a moment, until I feel the warmth of a sigh".

"Ayoung, I'm going to Seoul again tomorrow.." Du Ho said. I also have to go to Seoul. But Jeju land is holding me tight. I thought I can't let go of this. But I felt that to make my dreams come true, I must go to the battlefield.

"I want to go too..but I can't go," I said.

"Ayoung, don't run away from problems. Face them.. Be free, come to Jeju. Beauty, Tony, and Uncle are there to take care of the coffee shop." He encouraged me. It gave me a lot of strength.

At our destination, we went home again. I was lost. I still searched for him in dreams.. but I don't know if there was any result. I told Lawyer Kang that I will come back tomorrow.

I booked a flight to Seoul the same night.

No matter how much I looked for good places to stay, I couldn't stay there for long. I always looked for a place where I could be free. If I didn't do something that I felt in my heart, it felt like great pressure.

I quickly looked for a place to stay. I was able to find a place where I can live freely, close to soul city. I rented a place in Yongsan-gu.

I stopped drinking soju because I had to leave in the morning and went to sleep. I handed over the work of the shop to my uncle and the two newly arrived children. After handing it over, I went to the airport. Duho was also waiting for me.

We both left for Seoul.

"Ayoung, we are going to go on two roads," said Du Ho.

I just said "Hmm".

"Stay well wherever you are..face the problems..just like you said, do what you want," Du Ho said.

This was the third time Duho and I parted at the airport. It felt that we were always on two roads and that we would never meet again. But we met at unexpected times. Life is amazing. Things we think as well as things we don't think happened in unexpected places.

There are some encounters in life that will never be forgotten..even though there are pains, they smile and collect happy memories from that angle.

I got off from DuHo airport and got ready to travel on two roads. I went to Yongsan-gu and talked to lawyer Kang..tomorrow He said that he would pick me up to go to the company that day. After coming to Yongsan-gu, a message arrived from Ha Joon.

"Nuna, I have finished my course. Next year my graduation. we have only 6 months.. Can you come?" I sent him a message saying that I am coming.

I drank soju when I was in Jeju more than usual. But I thought it had to stop. I was too busy to stop it. I used to always smile and stopped smiling.

After being sad for a long time, I started to live thinking that there is no sadness. I started to control my own emotions.

I knew that emotions get worse when they are controlled. I loved that brutality so much. The next morning, lawyer Kang came to take me. I remembered that I had come with my grandfather once when I was a child. I also remembered how I used to wait for my parents to come and attend their funeral.

After I entered the firm, I was introduced by lawyer Kang. Everyone looked at me when lawyer Kang said, "Kim Ayoung, the granddaughter of Kim Sea Hyung, the founder of LeeHuff7, will be the head of this company from today."

It felt new to me. I greeted them all. I felt very proud. I felt that I will take on a lot of responsibilities from today. I went to the room where my father and grandfather worked.

"Miss Ayonung, this office is the same. The acting CO was on the other side,"

"Ayoung, this is Lee Jun Jo who took care of this company without you."

While I was greeting him, "Thank you for taking care of company for a long time.. support me in this work." I sat in the office where my father and grandfather worked and looked around. There was a picture.. when I saw it, my eyes glistened with tears.

"Mr.kang, I don't have a degree in that field..but how can I do these things?" I asked.

"You don't need the education to be a CEO. You just need to know management. Ms. Ayoung."

"Don't be afraid, Ayoung, Jun Jo and I will give you those things."

Since then, I have come to the office every day with passion. He encouraged me with every slander. In the news in the newspapers, he said about me indiscriminately. I found news gossip disgusting.I didn't know it for a year.

I was so busy with my work that I forgot everything. But I felt a great emptiness in my heart.

Yongsan-gu was getting ready for spring. Byung ho jang also said that MinSu's military service was over. It was also on the paparazzi sites. I didn't go to see him because I didn't know if he remembered me.

After coming to Seoul, I couldn't go to see Minsu's parents.I went to Seoul University to see Ha Joon's graduation ceremony. shared with him During my days in Jeju, he looked for me from time to time.

"Ayoung sister..." he ran to me saying.

"Congratulations Joon" I ruffled his hair and gave him the garland I had brought.

"Do you want to go home with me, sister?" Joon asked me.

"I think family is angry with me," I said. I didn't have to look for them.

"No, let's go with me." He took me with him.

"Oh, my children" Minsu's mother hugs me lovingly.

"We are angry that you left without telling us," Mr. Hwang said a little harshly.

I greeted them by saying, "I'm sorry for causing you pain, but I will not run away again."

"Nuna, Minsu's brother has just finished his military service. He said he will come today too."

My heart started beating fast. I quickly got up from the chair.

"Where are you going? Come eat with us."

"Dad, I remembered a small task. I have to go do it. Don't tell Minsu that I came here."

After talking with them, I left to come home. I did not stay there for a long time. I came quickly because I know that Minsu is now in Seoul. I didn't have the strength to see him. I always felt guilty. I checked my phone while walking home and eating ramen.

"I will come back to Seoul tomorrow. Yoshie 🐰" I was informed that Yoshie will come to Seoul after 2 years. There were some friendships and no matter how many problems came, Yoshie, Du Ho, Byung, and Yull are like that.

After I quit my job, Suha stopped talking to me. I later found out that she was also breaking up with Byung Ho. I found out that Suha is a person who makes friends only if there is an advantage for herself. When Byung came to Jeju, he told me that she had also taken money from Byung. I am very disappointed in people. Because of that frustration, I reduced my socializing with people.

I went to the office early in the morning and finished my work. An announcement said that Japan Airways has landed in Seoul. I kept my eyes on the passengers coming.

"Yoshiee..I'm here" and shouted waving loudly. She also saw me and screamed and ran and hugged me.

She cried, saying, "Oh my dear, I'm sorry for leaving you."

"I came too" Yull jumped up and said. I went with both of them to their house.

She jumped up and danced saying "We liked it at home".

I can't bear the happiness of meeting them after a long time. I enjoyed speaking gossip with them both.

Looking at the stars shining in the distant sky, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Isn't it time for Ayoung Min to talk?" I heard his name and my heart beat faster.

"No..." I replied to Yoshie in one word.

"How is he doing? Without talking to you,"

"Yo, you are very tired. Let's talk tomorrow. I will go."

As I sat alone in the quietness of my room, wrestling with the tumultuous emotions that consumed me, I found solace in the haunting melody of Minsu's song. Each note seemed to carry a fragment of our shared memories, stirring a mix of conflicting emotions within me. I couldn't decide whether I should let go of the past, bury it deep within the recesses of my mind, or hold onto it tightly, cherishing every bittersweet moment and allowing myself to grieve for what was lost.

Tears welled up in my eyes, and a heavy sigh escaped my lips as I whispered to myself, "I don't know if I should forget or remember and grieve..." The pain seemed unbearable, and my heart ached with an indescribable longing. Despite my efforts to find peace, it remained elusive, slipping through my fingers like grains of sand.

Lost in the depths of my despair, I found refuge in Minsu's song. His voice echoed through the room, carrying the weight of his absence and the remnants of our unfinished story. The lyrics spoke to my wounded soul, reminding me to be patient, to endure the hardships until the arrival of a new season, where healing and renewal could blossom like spring flowers.

With a heavy heart and a bottle of soju in hand, I sought temporary solace in its numbing embrace. The liquid fire offered a momentary respite, dulling the pain that threatened to consume me. The emptiness inside me seemed insatiable, driving me to fill it with temporary distractions, even if they couldn't truly quench my thirst for lasting peace.

As I took another sip, the bitterness of the soju mingled with the bitter-sweetness of memories, reminding me of the love and loss that intertwined in my life. It was a delicate dance between holding on and letting go, between embracing the pain and searching for moments of fleeting happiness.

In that moment, I realized that true healing required more than just drowning my sorrows in a bottle. It demanded facing my inner demons with courage, finding the strength to confront the past, and embracing the uncertain path ahead. The road to peace may be arduous, but I was determined to embark on this journey, no matter how difficult it may be.

And so, with Minsu's song as my guiding light and the remnants of my heartache as a reminder of my resilience, I whispered to myself, "Be patient, be patient until spring comes." It was a pledge to myself, a declaration of my commitment to heal, to find peace, and to create a new beginning that would bring warmth and joy back into my life.

As the night unfolded and the last echoes of the song faded away, I closed my eyes, allowing the music to linger in my soul. I knew that the road ahead would be challenging, but I was ready to face it, armed with the strength born from my pain and the hope that bloomed even in the darkest corners of my heart.